40 Thousand Reasons

Chapter 123: Arrangement

Perhaps it was me, but I felt the urge to just crush most Inquisitors I found, even those with exemplar conduct. Sadly, they were actually needed, acting like white cells inside a sick organism.

Sure, most of them used axes and hot irons to cut away and burn the infections, often without much care of burning innocents in their zeal.

A few of those that I caught in the act, just ordering Exterminatus on planets on mere suspicion of hiding a cult, those I introduced to a krak grenade on their necks, leaving their Acolytes to carry on a proper investigation.

Their power armor will just need doused with a stream of water to wash off the brains and blood, and it would still be good as new.

The cults leaders were also blown up, leaving a trail of smoke and fire for a smart Acolyte to raise above and become an Inquisitor himself.

As for Trazyn, we arranged for another space hulk to be broken up into useful bits, this time the famous Olethros.

The ships themselves would be emptied of cultists and genestealers, and their engine cogitators would be filled with the new STC patterns, including the cruiser-sized warp-less engine.

A hundred Navy and Mechanicus ships were casually dropped in Forge World systems, from Antax to Gryphonne IV, or from Canto II to Khania.

As a gift for my Rose, the Norn's GhostInquisitorial battlecruiser arrived near her Eye of Damocles fortress, while the Dark Angels battlebarge called Caliban's Will arrived in front of their wandering asteroid-fortress, the Rock.

Sure the voidships were beaten up and would need lots of work to be recommissioned, but that wasn't the point. The stores of STC templates were, a wealth of knowledge that should push the strength of humanity a few thousands years ahead.

Forge Retribution received another damaged Apocalypse-class battleship, because I was playing favorites. And if there were 34 Knight suits on board that ship, plus enough Mechanicus weapons to arm a Skitarii legion, it must have been Emperor's Will. Maybe the Omnissiah? It sure seemed that way.

As for Forge World Lentrel_Prime, which wasn't blown up by the Necron World Engine this time, they received an entire Ark Mechanicus, just to spit in fate's face. I made my own fate, damn hellish universe!

Of course, I couldn't stop every tragedy and massacre, either being in the wrong place, or lacking the means.

But I could prepare for example for Armageddon, simply by having Lord Trazyn drop the asteroid core of the Olethros on a collision course with planet Urk. A mere cosmic accident, as it happened so often to human worlds. Why not to Orks, right?

While the range of the Pharos was small, and I couldn't burn the place with Exterminatus, an asteroid crashing onto a planet would still burn most life away, just like the dinosaurs of Terra found out.

The Ork Boss Ghazghkull might survive this, because he also had gods on his side, but the crazy mushroom wouldn't have that Ork army to start with anymore.

The sad truth was that Warp godlings were able to direct space hulks as transport ships and infection vectors for Tyranid genestealers or various Ork and Chaos forces, or create Warp Storms to abduct entire star systems or Astartes Chapters.

I was simply returning the favor, using advanced technology in place of mighty psyker powers. Sadly, the currency of this great game were lives, and often human lives.

I had no doubt the Emperor was playing the game as well, possibly in a loose alliance with the Eldar gods.

As for the Tau, it was increasingly clear that their leading caste, the Ethereals were a strange breed of Navigators, using their empathic powers instead of psyker powers. Not being Warp-based, or possibly only tangentially like the normal Blanks were.

But because they were rather close in galactic terms, I needed the Tau contained, before they began the 3rd, 4th and 5th Expansion Spheres which would make them a match for the Ultima Segmentum.

Their allies were instead free game, and Trazyn was glad for a challenge. "My Warriors would enjoy the challenge indeed, if what you say it's true. Can't have someone else join our party and collect species and individuals with mind-control. I shall direct a dozen of my Lords to raid and harass those allies, while using incremental weaponry like you wish. But I will need more of those Dark Eldar Void mines, to...conduct political maneuvers. Yes, that's the correct term. Only my own Dynasty is worthy to lead the Necrons."

Easily accomplished, as the Void mines were smaller than a torpedo. I provided three dozen of those darklight weapons, which will soon be transformed into three dozen Necron Dynasties left without a leader. We did have plenty of common enemies, Trazyn and I.

"All right, Lord Trazyn, now I shall tell you another story. In the final days of the Horus Heresy, the Battle_of_Drooth_II took place on a massive scale, among Titan Legions from both sides. And here on Drooth II is where the famous Psi-Titans of the Ordo Sinister were deployed. One of these rare Titans, the Occedentalis-Chirion was tragically lost on this Ultramar world, and as a final revenge, a loyal Titan Princeps targeted the space elevator and brought it down, killing almost everyone and pulverizing the great machines of Humanity. But, someone with great skill and patience might be able to pinpoint the exact place and time to interfere. A damaged Psi-Titan, and a mostly intact Warlord Titan vanishing right as the orbital structure falls onto the battling armies below. Just imagine the value of those treasures! Plus, nobody would even know they were not destroyed." I whispered in his robotic mind, while leaning heavily on my Bone Staff.

"...And for this lesson, you want what in trade? All those Titans I so painfully worked to capture from Forge Venatoria?" the Necron Overlord asked in a suspicious voice.

"You have made clear you want a collection of Titans. Fine! So you can keep those you already have. But that Psi-Titan is armed with a powerful Pariah weapon the dread Sinistramanus Tenebrae. The pilot is also a Blank of tremendous power, and only that Pariah Princeps can fire the weapon. Now imagine that weapon, repaired and magnified, combined with the Blackstone Fortress. It might even work on the Hadex Anomaly!" I suggested in a teasing voice.

"...Perhaps. It would take me years to pinpoint the exact timeline, and extract the weapon undetected. The Human Emperor is still active at that time, and he scares me. It would be very risky for me even if working through a disposable remote, and the gains... The gains would be worth it, as I do have these orange monkeys to repair and upgrade that Tenebrae device. And in return?" Trazyn asked in an aggravated voice.

"I want that other Titan, including the crew. And a mind-control device based on the Enslaver bones. Something very subtle and undetectable by psykers. Plus the STC schematic for a better Titan, although I assume you already have those." I demanded in a eager tone. I wasn't asking much, and the Necron knew it.

"It is a small claim indeed, if the extraction is successful. Surely you need something else?" Trazyn the Infinite wondered sensing something was amiss.

I pretended to think it over. "I could use a dozen small-scale tesseracts, for my agents. A thousand cubic kilometers of inner volume would be enough, perhaps also allowing short range teleports, don't wanna give these agents too many powers, you surely understand."

I think the Necron chuckled in amusement, while checking his stores for something on that low scale. "I do have a couple of these trinkets, we call them a Nexus_Arrangement. However, a dozen of them would be too much. Two of them, one paid in advance for your helpful information, the other when I recover that Psi-Titan. And your Null-Bone staff is ready too, although the flaw is very small. Perhaps the infant human needs to grow stronger and widen the flaw, before more psyker powers can be used."

Well, that made sense, I guess. Aeneas would only have the Blank traits manifested, like all the Blanks. But as he reached puberty the psyker genes will activate just like they did for Janice.

I could wait a decade no problem.

As for other trades, I would need more valuable information or artifacts. Back to lore digging, when I returned to my Chapter.

Checking with the Pharos one last time, I located a fleet of Ravagers Chaos vessels in orbit above the Tau world Salomine. With some carefully placed melta bombs inside the engine rooms, their ships were immobilized and prevented from retreat, giving the Tau a worthy enemy to fight. Why not let the Tau enjoy the wonders of the galaxy, and test their tactics on Chaos Space Marines?

After this, it was time to leave Sotha, before another less-friendly Inquisitor showed up. I couldn't count on my luck to meet another Ordo Xenos beauty. Were they hired as ambassadors for the human race?

Not that I would mind another pretty Inquisitor, even with the host of problems and demands they brought along.